


Interspecies friendship

by maybeillride



Category: Free!
Genre: And my love-affair with 1st-person Sousuke continues (eek), Beginnings, Excessive texting, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Haru's a black cat, M/M, New Year's Resolutions, Other, Pet-adoption AU, Rin's an Irish setter, Second Chances, With the power to bring these two lunkheads together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-31
Updated: 2015-12-31
Packaged: 2018-05-10 15:12:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5591017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maybeillride/pseuds/maybeillride
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the request:<br/>Rin and Haru as a dog and cat person thing, but real domestic and sweet and not sexual. Just kind of... Normalised? Like Rin scratching behind itchy ears and Haru doing it for him, Rin awkwardly walking in on Haru licking himself clean. Silly fluffy stuff like that.</p><p>...aaaand somehow i turned them into an ACTUAL dog and cat and made it a SouMako fic to boot. ...enjoy...? ;)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Interspecies friendship

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Daxii](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daxii/gifts).



> I REALLY REALLY HOPE IT WAS OK TO MAKE THEM ANIMALS, DAX  
> (...and now i wanna see a Free spinoff where they're ALL animals. Yikes.)

“Here’s to the end of this miserable, unfortunate, clusterfuck of a year,” Makoto says fervently. He draws a wavery line in the air as he sends his sake cup over to me, and somehow I manage to meet Makoto with my own cup in an ironic sobriety test. The china clinks and we drink.

“Hear hear,” I say when I can talk again. “Sounds like somebody’s relieved his folks finally went to bed so he can quit with the ‘holy cats’ and ‘Jiminy Christmases’.”

Makoto giggles at that so hard he collapses onto his back on the floor, something you’d see a trained bear do in a show at the zoo, and he’s big enough the knickknacks on the shelves in the living room jump in sync. “ _Sh-h-h!”_ I hiss through a big dumb grin. Makoto hides his head under the kotatsu as his chest shakes, and I carefully refill our cups.

“Ohhh man,” he groans when he finally comes out, rolling back up and tucking his legs in under the futon. He leans on the table and stares at me with unhinged intensity. “I mean it. I _so_ mean it. This year can’t end fast enough. Out with the _fucking_ old, in with the new.”

“He was fucking old, alright.”

Makoto nods earnestly. “You know, he was. He totally was. I am _so_ done with old guys, Sousuke. _Done._ They’re boring, they don’t get my jokes, I don’t get _their_ jokes. They keep trying to help me with my taxes.”

“Ha! Whiner. Send him my way. _I’d_ like help on my taxes.”

“That’s because you’re pathetic,” Makoto says, but the asshole says it so sweetly I don’t mind. We drink our sake in friendly silence as the heater ticks under the table and someone snores gently upstairs.

“Hey, what’d you wish at the shrine?” I finally say, hesitant. “I know it’s tacky to ask.”

“Hell, no,” Makoto says. “Maybe if I tell you I can make it come true.” He pauses too long and I find myself leaning forward in interest.

“…I wished to be more selfish this year,” my old friend says, and the tips of his ears are this hot pink that always happens when he’s embarrassed. I snort in surprise. “Probably not what you’re ‘supposed’ to say but fuck it. I’m sick of telling myself no.”

I can’t hold back my grin. “Shut up. You know what I wished?”

“To stop being such a dick?” Makoto shoots back, eyes dancing, apparently getting started on his New Year’s wish early.

“Sorta. I wanna be _less_ selfish this year,” I say, and Makoto’s eyes get huge, mouth drops open and I’m laughing, as quietly as I can.

“To fate,” I’m finally able to say as I offer my cup again.

“To fate,” Makoto answers, the china clinking in agreement.

*

**Sent:** _hey dick. Figured it out. I’m gonna adopt a dog. Rescue dog, none of this breeder crap. My apt lets me have pets! Gonna be a nicer guy b4 you know it, ha._

**JollyGreenGiant:** _…wow, Sousuke. You know anything about dogs? That’s a huge commitment!! Can I help you pick it out?_

I’m too tired after my day at work and bemused to be offended. It’s just Makoto’s _way_ to always think about the practical, even if it points out the fact that I’m a bit of a moron in comparison. If I’m honest with myself – which I always am, even if no one knows it – the thought of “knowing what I was doing” never crossed my mind when I had the idea:

 _You’re going to get a dog, and you guys are gonna be best buds._ I’d had a dog once, back in sixth grade, but it jumped our backyard fence and never came back. Getting another one would be some kind of canine karma.

I smile crookedly down at my phone.

 **Sent:** _yeah if you don’t mind. you free in like an hour by any chance?? meet at the shelter?_

Makoto’s reply comes in almost immediately. _I’d be honored, meet you there! :D (I see you didn’t touch the commitment comment lol)_

I elect not to touch it a second time and stow the phone in my back pocket.

The shelter is a little ways out, several stops down from my apartment so I have a chance to change into something I don’t mind getting dirty before heading out again. Makoto’s waiting for me when the doors open at the station, leaning against a vending machine with his hand in a bag of something way too sweet.

“Hey,” I greet him as I amble up, shaking my head as he offers the bag of Gummy-Somethings. “Thanks a lot for being up for this today.”

“Are you kidding??” he says incredulously. “I’ve been hoping we could do this all day. You _need_ me, Sousuke.” He bumps shoulders with me as we start the block-walk to the shelter. “Oh my God, if I wasn’t here you’d get the butchest dog they have and they’d find your half-eaten body in the apartment a week later. After a tragic power-struggle over potty-training or something.” He snorts and I scowl at him.

“Sounds like you’re enjoying this new persona you got going.”

He smiles and – as always – I can only smile back. “Eh, I do it for effect around you, of course. But yeah. It feels _good_ to try to say and do what I want, for once. Weird, but good.”

“I envy you.”

Makoto whacks my shoulder, but in my big marshmallow of a winter coat I don’t mind. “Liar. When have you _ever_ gone five minutes without saying or doing what you want.”

“Oh, if I _really_ did that, I’d be dead or in prison, dude.”

He glimmers his eyes at me, one of his subtle-Makoto looks that I know sees all, and is deciding to take a holiday from judgment and just be amused by it. I give him my best serial-killer mugshot face to complete the exchange.

He holds the door for me and we file into a bright little waiting room. Somehow we both know to quit our stupid teasing; maybe it’s the muffled barking through a door at the far side of the room. Somehow, being here, my vague idea is becoming 100% reality and I realize, _really_ realize, I’m going to walk out of here with another living thing I’ll be expected to feed, walk, keep an eye on, generally ensure its well-being. Makoto’s jab about commitment suddenly seems pretty accurate.

The kind-eyed woman at the reception desk nods to us. “Here to adopt or to claim?”

Makoto has to elbow me to get me out of my groom-at-the-altar state. “Uh! Uh, we’re – I’m – looking to adopt. A dog, that is.”

She smiles and lifts the receiver. “Go ahead through that door, Sasabe-san will take care of you. He’s the blond gentleman.” She winks. “Don’t let him talk you into the bulldogs, now.”

Makoto – Mr. Smooth – thanks her kindly and we pass through the door, the barking much louder on this side. A stocky blond guy is in fact hurrying to meet us. He beams as he shakes our hands.

“What are you in the market for, kid?” he asks with interest, tapping a finger on his chin. “Low energy? High? Big, small? Young or old?” He stares at me almost rudely. “Can you handle a dog with some ‘history’ or do you need a clean slate? What experience have you had?”

“Whoa, whoa, let me catch up, please,” I say, and Sasabe looks just as intense but obliges. I glance over at Makoto and am pleased to see him hanging back with his arms crossed, letting me take the lead. “So. It’s been years since I had a dog, I was in grade school. So… nothing too… needy?” I fumble. Sasabe raises a very not-blond eyebrow. “…no, no, I _know_ every dog is gonna be needy. I guess I just don’t care what I get in the end, my apartment doesn’t have size restrictions, I can take it with me when I jog. All of that.” I stop and can’t figure out how to say what I mean.

“…you’ll know it when you see it,” Makoto suggests. I point at him in triumph.

“Yes. I just wanna give something else a better life,” I say limply to the blond guy, and he chuckles at that but his eyes are warm.

“I hear you, kid. That’s the best reason to adopt. Why don’t we take a walk and you see if anyone speaks to you. The info sheets on the cages are pretty complete but I may be able to tell you more if you need it.”

So we do, and it’s… hard. By the end of the first corridor I can’t remember anything, which set of pleading big eyes went with which dog, even as Sasabe offers helpful little tips and Makoto actually takes notes for me on his phone like a personal assistant. But Makoto was right that I would know it when I saw it, and by halfway through I’m frustrated and doubting myself.

As always, Makoto knows what’s up even though I haven’t said anything. He grabs my elbow as we start down the third and final corridor. “Sousuke, how about we do a little research and come back? Maybe it wasn’t so smart to dive in like this.” His face is sad – his mouth turned down in a way it almost never is, and I’ll bet it’s being here with all these hopeful creatures. Makoto must want to take them _all_ home with him, even with the unfortunate no-pet policy at his place.

…and then I see it. Or, as I hurry over to scan the info sheet, see _him._

He’s a big dog, gangly and pretty much all-legs. He practically looks like a baby giraffe as he awkwardly gets up from the little circle he makes in the corner, then stretches stiffly and stalks over.

“Hey. Check this guy out, Makoto,” I say slowly, looking down in his eyes as the dog is – clearly, uncannily – looking back, assessing me as much as I’m doing to him. Makoto gamely runs a finger down the sheet.

“Hmmm! Says his name is – ha, this is funny, ‘Rin.’ Somebody with my parents’ sense of humor.” He _tsk_ s and the big red dog turns his narrow head to look Makoto over. “Okay. Irish setter, only a year old, neutered, has his shots. Aww.” He stops, and I glance up.

“What?”

“’Reason for surrender: death of owner.’” He taps the line insistently. “This dog’s in mourning!”

“Oh my _God,_ Makoto, dogs don’t mourn,” I sigh, and look back down despite myself. There’s something about the dog’s deep mahogany eyes that just seems to know what’s going on, as he fixes me with a last look before turning his back on us and shuffling to the corner again.

“…they don’t?” Makoto challenges, and that’s when I’m sure that Rin is the one for me. I whirl so fast to face Sasabe, he jumps.

“I’d like this dog, please,” I tell him with total certainty.

He raises that eyebrow again but he’s smiling. “Now, Rin’s a good dog but he’s… moody. Do you think you can handle that?”

Makoto opens his mouth but I don’t give him an opening. “I’m sure, sir. I get moody too. We’ll probably get along great.” Makoto gets out a smart-ass laugh at that.

We turn down a different corridor, Sasabe talking about some kind of home and lifestyle questionnaires and other paperwork, and this time it’s Makoto who stops us dead.

“Sousuke,” he says urgently, holding my arm back so I can’t go on. He’s pointing at one of the little wire cat-cages that line this hallway.

I follow his finger, confused, to a little black cat curled in one corner like the dog. But the cat is facing us, chin resting on its paws and one eye open at the new noise.

“It’s a cat,” I say helpfully.

“It’s so _cute,_ ” Makoto coos, exactly like a 14-year-old girl. I look at him suspiciously as he hurries to read the info sheet.

“Isn’t he though?” Sasabe puts in, and I look over at him suspiciously too.

“…ha! It’s fate! Another male cat with a girl name,” Makoto reports excitedly. “’Haru.’ Two years old, healthy, neutered, says the owners moved away and left him.” He frowns at the sheet but it passes almost immediately as he keeps reading. “He loves baths! Can you believe that?”

“You can’t _have_ cats in your apartment, moron. And isn’t your dad deathly allergic?”

Makoto sighs dramatically as he turns back to me. “Not _me,_ genius. You! You need to adopt him, too!”

I cross my arms reflexively. “Uh, no. Were you asleep in school when we covered the ‘cats vs. dogs’ unit?”

My heart seizes in surprise-going-on-panic when Makoto grabs my upper arms, his face lit up like a goddamn evangelist spreading the Good Word. “No! It’s perfect, Sousuke! Rin’s info sheet said he came from a house with a cat so he probably grew up with ‘em! He’s probably mourning the cat, too!” My friend turns to Sasabe for confirmation and I start to question the wisdom of my decision to invite him. “Isn’t that right, if we got a cat friend for Rin that would probably make him feel better?”

I’m also wondering about Makoto’s choice of the word “we” and Sasabe seems to see it on my face, patting my elbow before turning back to the cage. “Tell you what. Let’s have you two meet and see what you think.” He has the lock undone in one practiced movement and reaches in, gently scooping the little cat up under his front legs and bottom and turning back to us.

…Haru _is_ cute, I can’t deny it. Adorable, even – in the better light of the overhead fluorescents, his eyes are two sky-blue marbles as he blinks sleepily at us. Makoto shoots his hands out like a kid grabbing a gift at Christmas.

“I’ll soften him up for you, Sousuke,” he says hurriedly, and I scoff at my friend’s blatant cat-fetish on full display, but I also am secretly glad. It may _look_ easy to hold that furry thing but something tells me I shouldn’t be so sure.

Makoto’s familiarity with cats is obvious, as he gently accepts Haru, holding him carefully the same way Sasabe had. He leans in close – _too_ close for a damn unfamiliar shelter cat with claws, I would think – and peers into his face like he’s going to kiss the thing. “Aren’t you just the cutest, Haru-chan,” he murmurs, and the cat makes a little confirmatory _mreh_ that gets Makoto glancing up at me, eyes dancing.

“…oh my _God,_ Makoto,” I groan, but I can’t help smiling.

“Well, looks like we have one convert. You want to give it a try?” Sasabe offers me.

I swallow, trying not to be too obvious about it, and hold out my hands. Makoto gently deposits Haru in them and I remember – one under the arms, one under his butt – and that’s as far as I get before Haru reaches out to swat my nose.

I suck in a breath to yell, or protest, or something, and forget to do any of those as his paw lands and just stays there, claws safely put away. The cat’s a total bullshit-artist, basically. He sizes me up, our faces at close range and his wide pupils ticking side to side, and I feel weirdly vulnerable.

“…Makoto,” I whisper, trying not to move any muscles and get a noseful of claws. The cat’s ears prick forward at the sound. “What do I do now?”

Makoto whispers too which would be hilarious in a different situation. “Just ease him down and cradle him against your shoulder,” he instructs, and I’m surprised how helpful that is.

“I’m sending you the bill if he shreds my nose,” I grumble, then with a little shrug I have the cat down where Makoto told me to. I look up at Makoto and Sasabe in triumph. “Hey! This is easy!”

“Sousuke – !” Makoto hisses, darting forward to scoop Haru away, which is hard given that he’s now latched onto my coat with all four paws. He does some up-and-over move and the cat magically comes free, his ears now out to the sides like a little furry Yoda as Makoto hands him back to Sasabe.

“You have to be gentle, kid,” the blond man tells me, and I swallow my immediate need to retort that duh, I’m gentle, of _course_ I’m gentle. Makoto pats my shoulder.

“Hold a cat like a baby. No squeezing,” he says and I wonder one last time how doable this is. I can’t remember the last time I held a baby. But I’m willing to learn. And Rin probably _does_ need a friend.

“How would Haru do with a dog, do you think?” I ask Sasabe, the black cat obnoxiously passive and content in his beefy arms. “The sheet doesn’t say.”

“Nope, Haru lived alone at his former owners’. But I wouldn’t worry too much. We’ll get you materials on how to get them used to each other.” Haru yawns, showing off his fangs, and turns his head into Sasabe’s chest.

I nod once to Makoto and his grin is immediate. “Alright, you sold me. But I’m using you as my on-call Cat Whisperer, just so you know.”

Makoto eagerly takes Haru back from Sasabe. “All according to plan.”

*

I shouldn’t have worried about Rin and Haru not getting along – in fact, I shouldn’t have worried about having a cat at all. For a solid two weeks after they move in, I barely have any physical proof I have a cat at all.

His food – dry, tasteless-seeming kibble the shelter recommended to keep his teeth and weight healthy – is gone from its bowl on the kitchen counter, another tip from the guide to introducing dogs to cats. _Give them their own space for meals for the first few weeks,_ it said, _to allow the animals to safely eat and explore their new environment on their own._

And Haru has apparently oriented himself to the litterbox in the pantry, thank _God,_ which honestly had been my biggest fear about adopting a cat. Even ahead of the fact that I don’t have Makoto’s “cat-mom” instincts, I sure as shit wasn’t prepared to play _actual_ cat-mom and try to teach the thing how to potty. There are a handful of reasons I haven’t reproduced, and that’s one of them. I’m pleasantly surprised at the box’s cleanliness, too – apparently Haru’s neat, almost fastidious, covering his tracks so diligently it hardly smells.

“Are you worried about him?” Makoto asks over a quick lunch one day, and I’m amused at the tell-tale way his eyebrows turn down. Clearly, someone’s worried, and it isn’t me.

“Nah. The guide said that’s totally normal for cats. Said he’s exploring his new territory or something.” I _pfft._ “And moping. Probably moping too.”

“You’re terrible, Sousuke,” Makoto mom-scolds me. He reaches under the table in the teacher’s lounge, and we both smile at the answering _thump-thump_ of Rin’s tail. “Good thing you have Mr. Social, here.”

And he’s right, _so_ right. Rin took to my apartment in all the ways Haru hasn’t, spending a grand total of half a day sniffing around dejectedly before his first dinnertime. His mood lifted even more when I pulled the leash back out, asking in an exaggerated voice if he wanted to go for a walk (and hardly feeling dumb about it at all). It was surprisingly mild that night, under a hazy moon, and I started us in the direction of the boardwalk. I don’t know if it was the smell of salt or maybe even if his old owner used to walk him there too, but within just a few seconds he broke into a run in that direction, fast, so fast the leash snapped out taut.

“ _Heel!_ ” I yelled, more an experiment than anything, and to my shock and pleasure he did, dropping back to jog along at my side. I grinned down at him and he glanced up to meet my eyes again, that uncanny trick of his, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth happily. Somehow I was able to keep up the near-punishing pace all the way to the beach, panting for breath when we got there way more than Rin was. But it was a great excuse to stop and just stand, getting lost in the rush of the waves curling themselves up onto the sand, the reflection of the moon a smear far out on the water. Rin panted quietly at my side, and when I thoughtlessly reached down he nosed his head into my palm.

“I can’t believe they let you bring him with you to work,” Makoto marvels. “I can’t believe the parents aren’t freaking out about allergies or something.”

I bump into Makoto’s hand as I reach under the table to pet Rin too. “I think the shit’s gonna hit the fan eventually. But my principal ran it past the school board and no one objected. I think it helps that I can meet with a kid elsewhere if they can’t come to the guidance office.” I chew my last piece of tonkatsu. “It also helps that my principal has show dogs.”

Makoto laughs. “Hey, let’s try that next step in the guide tonight. Are you free?” He has his excited face on that I pretty much can’t ever deny.

“Are you?? What, no date?”

Like they always seem to on this subject, Makoto’s ears pink-up again. I chew my pork through a sly smile. “Hey, I don’t have to be getting –” He drops his voice tactfully. “– hot sex _every_ night, you know. Sometimes a guy needs a break, okay?”

“Ah. A break. To hang out with my dog and phantom-cat,” I speculate, and he clams up entirely. I lay off. “No, that’d be great. Thanks. And I may have lied. I _may_ be a little… concerned about Haru. That’s all.” He pats me on the shoulder in the same benevolently patronizing way he pats my dog, and I’m only a little offended.

The guide suggests shared feeding as the next magic step of the process, and privately, I have my doubts. Are a couple of food bowls really going to be enough to keep them from tearing each other apart? I’m not even sure who I’m more worried for – Rin may have the size advantage, but Haru’s the wild-card (in every way).

Makoto knocks on my door at seven, and holds up two plastic bags as I open it. “Which one is for us and which is for them?” I ask as he rolls his eyes. “No, really, thanks for picking this up. I’ll brown the hamburger. And what’d you say you got Haru?” I take both bags from him, one from the grocery and one from the ramen place down the street.

“Mackerel.” I pull out a can and look at it skeptically.

“Hey, aren’t cats supposed to be all about tuna? _Mackerel?_ ” I ask, but he just snatches the can from my hand and gets a fork from the drawer.

The smell of cooking hamburger is enough to get Rin padding into the kitchen from somewhere, nails clicking on the floor. He sits obediently at my side and manages to look as adorable as possible, and it’s so shameless I bust out laughing.

“Hang on, man. You have a dining companion tonight,” I tell him, and his normally-droopy ears prick forward, making him look like he has a punky haircut. I snicker and turn back to the skillet.

Rin’s feast transferred to his dish, I turn to Makoto. “Okay, how the hell do we get Haru out now? You’d think I could keep tabs on the damn thing. It’s only a one-bedroom.”

Makoto pats my shoulder. “Leave it to me,” he tells me, and taps the can with the fork, adding a “kitty-kitty-kitty!” in this high-pitched voice. I want to smack him but at the same time don’t want to interrupt.

“…really, Makoto? ‘Kitty kitty kitty’?”

“There is no shame in pet ownership,” he says with funny dignity, and suddenly points. “Look – !”

I peer down the hall and – I’ll be – a little black head is there, peeking out of the bathroom. I trade a surprised look with my friend and hit his back with my free hand.

“Keep it up! It’s working!”

I’m confused, however, when Makoto turns to me, taking the dog bowl from my hands and replacing it with the can and fork. “No, now _you_ have to do it. Food is the key to every animal’s heart, Sousuke. It’s great that you’ve been feeding him so far, that’s a start, but now you gotta get Haru eating out of your _hand.”_ I must look horrified because he quickly adds, “So to speak. Once you’re Mackerel Man Haru’s gonna be your buddy as much as Rin is.”

I laugh so suddenly the little black head pops back out of sight. “Uh, pardon my French Makoto, but no fucking way is that happening. Me and Rin are bros. Me and Haru…?” I shake my head in a sort of confused fear.

“…Mackerel Man,” Makoto promises, and leads me to the middle of the kitchen. “Go ahead…!”

“Oh my God,” I grumble, and sigh, and lift the fork. “Kittykittykitty,” I try in a sad-sounding monotone, smacking the can in time. The little black head stays hidden.

Makoto huffs and covers his eyes, the picture of a put-upon director. “No, Sousuke. You have to make it sound like the mackerel is fucking _awesome._ Like it’s the best thing in the world.”

“All this trouble to get the thing to eat??” I demand, and before he can sigh again I amend “I know, I know, the food is a means to an end, I’m buying his trust. Happy?”

“Very,” Makoto smiles.

“Jesus,” I mutter, then screw up my pride and find my inner kindergarten teacher. “Kitty kitty kitty!!” I shout – and Makoto grabs my wrist. Rin makes a soft little _woof_ where he’s sitting patiently at Makoto’s side, and it almost sounds like a laugh.

“…maybe just a _little_ less fucking awesome?” he suggests, and I shoot him a murderous look before stalking a few steps forward.

This time, I don’t even think about what I’m saying or how I’m saying it. I think instead about how Haru looked in Makoto’s arms… how content, and casual, and how much I’d like to get there with the cat someday too.

“Here, Haru,” I call, softly. “Got some mackerel for you! Here, kitty-kitty.” I make a little kissy-sound without even meaning to and don’t even have a chance to be embarrassed, as Haru – whole-body this time, not just a head – materializes. I whip around to Makoto.

“It’s working!” I gape, and Makoto’s gaping too, which is _hysterical,_ but he just waggles his hand for me to go on.

I crouch low, trying a string of little ticking sounds like a clock, tapping away on the can. Apparently I’ve found some kind of secret code, as Haru comes jogging lightly down the hall and stalks – warily, but still forward – into the kitchen. Makoto squeezes my shoulder in a vice grip.

I look back to find he’s ready to go, dish poised to give to Rin and the poor dog practically drowning in anticipatory drool.  

“Where – do I just – where do I –” I try.

“Just set it down facing Rin,” Makoto says, and I could kiss him for being so calm, or maybe die laughing at the operating-room tension. I pop the top and am startled at the unexpected feeling of a warm body, twining between my shins impatiently in a figure-8 like the cat hopes to trip me and get its damn fish faster. I crouch, setting the stinky can down in full view of the dog.

“…here, you damn psycho,” I mutter and the little black cat is suddenly fully present, crouched over the can with its face buried inside. Little, totally indelicate snorts and slurps drift up, and his tail sticks out stiffly, quivering in what’s either glee or a seizure.

“…holy cats,” I breathe. “He _is_ a psycho.”

“Eh, he just loves mackerel,” Makoto says happily, and I look up to find Rin in a similar state, face buried in the bowl and nosing little bits of hamburger out as he chows down. Makoto sits next to him, cross-legged, looking at my pets like a proud interspecies dad.

It doesn’t take long for them to finish, licking every trace from their dish and can. Then Rin looks at Haru, big fanlike tail whipping back and forth, and Haru pops up and skitters spastically across the kitchen floor. Rin chases and I suck in a breath to yell at him, but forget why as we watch him flop gracelessly down on his back, totally submitting. Haru apparently accepts the offer, hopping onto Rin’s chest and – to my shock – gnawing his ear like he thinks he’s a damn jungle cat.

“Sousuke!” Makoto exclaims. He crawls over next to me, and we watch as the cat and dog that were supposedly mortal enemies frolic like something out of a shameless YouTube video. “They’re best friends!”

Rin gets Haru’s entire head in his maw, Haru lets him, and I raise an eyebrow. “Best friends with a death-wish for each other, maybe,” I say, but I can’t believe what we’re seeing, it’s too good to be true. “Something tells me they’ve been getting to know each other all this time. Shows you how much _I_ know.”

Makoto pats my shoulder. “Well, let’s leave them to it. I’m starving.” He gets to his feet then helps me up too. And despite how hungry we both are, we stand dumbfounded, watching as Rin and Haru have moved on to facing each other in some kind of animal boxing match. Haru looks like he means business, tipped back on his haunches and swatting madly at Rin’s snout. Rin’s acting pretty serious too, snapping the air around Haru’s head, but that tail is waving like it’s the happiest day of the dog’s life.

“…ah. If only people could be that honest,” Makoto says, his tone soft and almost wistful, and I look around at him sharply. But he’s too fast, already getting the bowls out for the ramen, and I head for the six-pack in the fridge. A question for another time.

We bring our dinner into my little living room, our go-to spot to relax. Between the beer and the carb-load, on top of the indisputable triumph of the evening, I feel perfectly fine on the couch, my best friend’s long legs stretched out on the table next to mine. Then there’s the jingle of metal, and Rin comes jogging into the room.

“Up,” I offer, patting the couch next to me, and the gangly thing springs up… then steps over me and shoves his way between us. Makoto laughs as the dog lays his head on my thigh, like the kiss-up he is.

“You’re so screwed, Sousuke,” he says, gravely, leaning his head on the back of the couch and reaching down to pet Rin’s feathery fur like he can’t help it. “You’re gonna be one of those people that, like, celebrates your dog’s birthday and dresses him up for Halloween and all the rest of it.”

I bristle. “Yeah? So?”

He leans in close over the dog between us, turns my face to his as I blink in surprise. It’s dim in the room but his eyes have a funny shine to them.

“… _screwed,_ ” he whispers wickedly. I roll my eyes and knock his hand away and he just laughs at me again. Rin looks up, glancing between us with interest.

“Sorry the cat’s not wanting to cuddle with you,” I singsong at him. “Maybe he’ll be more social next time you’re over. Maybe if _you_ give him his damn stinky fish he’ll be all over you.”

Makoto points silently past me, and I turn to look – and am face-to-face with Haru, a furry little Angel of Death perched on the back of the couch, staring intently into my eyes with a few centimeters between us.

“ _Aaah!_ ” I yell, and Haru shoots straight off the couch through the air in a way land-dwelling creatures shouldn’t, and Rin slithers off the couch and under the coffee-table in a way mammals shouldn’t, and races off in pursuit. Makoto, meanwhile, falls into my lap, wheezing in a way that doesn’t sound healthy. I’m too stunned to shove him off.

“Oh, Sousuke,” he can finally manage after he’s pulled himself back up. The sounds of… things crashing over in my bedroom _should_ get me up to investigate, but I find myself not caring, sitting with Makoto like we have front-row seats to some mini-apocalypse. That he bought.

“This is gonna change my life, isn’t it,” I remark.

He leans over to pick up his beer that somehow survived all that unscathed. “Change is good,” he says, and tips the bottle back for a long drink.

*

 **Sent:** _so I tried really hard to get a vid or just pics but for various reasons  couldn’t. but. Guess who took a bath with me last night??_

**JollyGreenGiant:** _SHUT UP. And you still have your bits? Impressive ;)))) (can i have proof?)_

**Sent:** _*cheeky*. Yeah, I was just minding my own business and BAM the little fucker jumps right in. info sheet wasn’t kidding._

**JollyGreenGiant:** _I’m serious, I demand proof! You get a pic next time or I get to be there, deal?? So did he like it?? what did he do?_

**Sent:** _so it was really fucking cute (shut up). First he paddles around in there. No lie. Like a little damn dog. Then he crawls up and sits on my chest. *purring* (don’t you fucking say anything)_  

**JollyGreenGiant:** _asdfghjkl <3_

**JollyGreenGiant:** _omg, you guys are soul mates._

**Sent:** _I TOLD YOU NOT TO SAY ANYTHING_

**JollyGreenGiant:** _lol! What’d Rin do??_

**Sent:** _that was the funniest part of all. I hear him in the hall and then BAM other fucker jumps in too. I still have the clawmarks on my chest._

**JollyGreenGiant:** _AHAHAHA… ah Sousuke, I’m gonna start calling you St Francis ;D_

**Sent:** _fuck you, you’ve already got that title ;P_

**JollyGreenGiant:** _…thanks <3 Can I get a pic of what they’re doing now?_

I smile down at his textbox, rolling to look at the other side of my bed. Apparently even the traces of human soap still in the bath after my shower were too much for Haru. He’s currently engaged in a mad effort to clean Rin, having already taken care of himself (priorities!), and Rin is in some kind of ecstasy as the cat licks the inside of his ears. It’s frankly disgusting, but at the same time touching to see such total interspecies acceptance.

I carefully hold my phone steady, moving as little as possible so I don’t scare the skittish thing away. Then I smile as I tap out a new message.

**Sent:** _so I did ya one better. Have a video. And I hope you aren’t eating while you watch._

Makoto takes a minute or so to reply and when he does there’s a pic attached. I click it first (I always did like opening the present before the card) and he’s so beautiful, holding the phone out so I can see he’s in bed like me, shirtless and hair a total mess.

**JollyGreenGiant:** _…hope there’s still room on that bed for me <3_

_*_

Omake:

Rin peeks an eye open at his human. He’s sprawled in his spot, relaxed, eyes closed and body still. His face is turned to them and his mouth curves up in a little smile that means he’s happy. Rin’s happy to see it.

He turns back to his best friend, cuddled up under Rin’s leg as close to him as he can get. Haru’s relaxed too, ears drooping to the sides and little paws twitching lightly. It feels good to keep his friend safe. He leans down and tucks his snout into Haru’s soft fur, and drifts into sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> That SouMako, too... that was unauthorized by me. Dudes were supposed to stay bros. CAN'T ANYONE STAY BROS IN THIS DAMN FANDOM?? Ah well, it was fun making Mako a sassmaster anyway. We'll see if he has any regrets when the inevitable Resolution Honeymoon Period wears off (in about February...)
> 
> Dax dear, i still am laughing that we got randomly matched for this thing. Thanks for such a perfect prompt and i guess i have to do the KisuHaruMako thing some other time ;)
> 
> Thank you all so very much for reading, and a very happy New Year to you! <3


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